Minutes_Cable Regulatory CommissionMINUTES OF CABLE TV REGULATORY COMMISSION MEETING
March 11, 2009
CITY HALL ANNEX CONFERENCE ROOM #2
MEMBERS PRESENT: Charlie Ellis, Ron Tigges, Andy Bellings, Walt Webster, Kevin
Stevens.
MEMBERS ABSENT: None.
OTHERS PRESENT: Craig Nowack, City of Dubuque Cable TV Coordinator
Kathy McMullen, Mediacom
Mr. Ellis called the meeting to order at 5:32 p.m.
Acceptance of the Agenda
Upon a motion by Mr. Webster, seconded by Mr. Stevens, the agenda was approved unanimously.
Approval of the Minutes of the December 10, 2008, Meeting
Upon a motion by Mr. Webster, seconded by Mr. Stevens, the Minutes of the December 10, 2008,
meeting were approved unanimously.
Public Comment
There was no public comment.
Mediacom Digital Tier Proposal
Mr. Nowack reported that on January 22, 2009, he had met with Mike Kohler and Kathy McMullen
from Mediacom in an attempt to reconcile their notes from various meetings and phone calls prior
to that date. Mr. Kohler said he would draft a formal proposal and send it to Mr. Nowack in letter
form. When nothing came, Mr. Nowack called Mr. Kohler last week and learned that Mr. Kohler
was still talking to his superiors to iron out a few items. Mr. Nowack expected a draft of the
proposal earlier this week but has not yet received anything.
Mediacom General Manager's Report
Ms. McMullen informed the Commission that notice of a rate increase will be going in customers'
billing statements in April. The limited basic package is increasing $3.15 to $24.15 per month.
The family basic package is going up $4.20 to $61.90 per month. It is her understanding that on
April 6, 2009, the TV Guide channel will be going away and will not be replaced with anything.
Mr. Ellis wondered if there was anything in the franchise agreement which stipulates that the TV
Guide channel must be available on the system and Mr. Nowack said there was not. Mr. Tigges
stated that the only way to get listings now is to get a box.
Mr. Ellis asked about additional HD channels. Ms. McMullen said that more will be added, but that
Mediacom may have to move analog channels to the digital tier only in order to get the bandwidth
to have more HD. Their goal is to have 50 HD channels by the end of the year. Mr. Ellis asked
why QVC was available on the HD tier and Ms. McMullen answered that it is a contractual
requirement.
Staff Report
Mr. Nowack reported that the busiest time of the year for the Cable TV Division is being to come to
a close. The busy period begins with budget season and ends the day after City Expo in April. He
said the City is looking at some additional systems to add functionality to the web site. He is also
finding the audience measurement features of the video web streaming solution to be interesting.
Now it's possible to see what videos (and what part of what videos) are being viewed online. The
number of viewers has been increasing each month since the new website was launched.
Mr. Nowack said he is working on some proposals for wiring certain buildings, such as Five Flags
and the Library, for live telecasts over the I-Net. He mentioned the challenges that some of the
facilities present in doing television production.
Future Agenda Items/Comments ~ Concerns
Mr. Nowack said the next scheduled meeting would be in May unless there was a need to meet
again next month.
Adjournment
Upon a motion by Mr. Tigges, seconded by Mr. Stevens, the meeting was adjourned at 6:00 p.m.
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